There are many reasons that you can have your driving license suspended. It might be due to a DUI offence (driving under the influence), it might be because you were talking on the phone, or if might be due to an unpaid ticket. The reasons are many and varied and they can depend on the laws in your specific state as well.
But regardless of the reason for your suspension, you may find that you still wish to take out car insurance. In that case, what are your options? Is it even possible? And how much is it likely to affect your premiums?
Feasibility
The first question to ask here is whether it is possible to take out car insurance on a suspended license. This is rather important, seeing as it will render the rest of this text rather redundant if you cannot! With that in mind, yes it is possible to get insurance with a suspended license in the majority of states. The law does vary slightly around the country, however, so if you’re unsure and you want to confirm one way or the other, then try calling your local DMV to find out. They will let you know whether it is permitted in your state and they will be able to tell you about your case in particular.
But just because it is legal, that doesn’t necessarily mean it will be easy. The next part is at the discretion of your insurance company but before we get to that, you might want to know why you would take out auto insurance for your car in the first place when you can’t drive it.
Why You Need Insurance
There are actually a number of reasons but perhaps the biggest one is that some people will want to protect their no-claims bonus and help to keep their premiums lower when they return to driving. Another reason that you might need to get insurance still, is if the suspension is only applicable to certain conditions. For example, it is actually quite common for a car insurance suspension to only apply to your commute to work. In other cases, the suspension might be for everything except your commute to and from work. In other cases, you may be allowed to drive to and from work as long as there is someone else in the car.
Finding an Insurer
Once you have determined that you need car insurance and you have found out whether or not you are allowed to drive in your state, the next thing you need to do is to find a car insurance company willing to provide you with that cover. This is what we call ‘the hard part’.
Car insurance companies of course offer insurance based on the likelihood that they’ll be able to earn money from you. That means that they are ideally looking for people who will be unlikely to have an accident, meaning they’ll pay lots of money in and never request to get any money out!
If you have had a car accident or if you have been convicted of a driving offense, then this makes you statistically more likely to have further accidents in the future. In turn, this makes you more of a risk for the insurance company and means that they are likely to charge you more for your insurance. And some will be concerned and won’t offer insurance at all. Your options go down then and your premiums go up.
But if you keep looking, you should be able to find a deal you’re happy with. The thing to keep in mind is that many will have stipulations that you will be required to fulfill. For example, some will require you to prove that you are working to have your suspension lifted, or they might want a guarantee that your license will be reinstated within a specific period.
How Will This Affect My Premiums?
Of course, this is going to affect your premiums and in the vast majority of cases, you will be looking at paying significantly more for your car insurance. Again, you are presenting more of a risk to the company and this is their way to protect themselves.
If you are taking out car insurance in order to protect your no-claims, then you need to compare the value of this to other options. For example, many companies will allow you to pay a small fee in order to protect your no-claims for a certain period. In most cases, a no-claims discount will be valid for over a year between policies.
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